The combination of direct materials and direct labor.
The combination of direct materials and direct labor.
A journal entry to correct an erroneous amount previously entered in the general ledger.
The underlying true cause of a cost occurring. In other words, the root cause is more than a mere correlation between an event and a cost. There is a real cause and effect relationship.
Sometimes used as a heading in place of paid-in capital.
A constant or unchanging amount that is often used when referring to petty cash. For example, if the petty cash account in the general ledger has an imprest balance of $100, the account balance will be a constant $100....
See chief financial officer.
A Latin term that means in proportion. See prorate.
A listing of the accounts in the general ledger along with each account’s balance in the appropriate debit or credit column. The total of the amounts in the debit column should equal the total of the amounts in the...
A method where only the variable manufacturing costs are assigned to inventory and the cost of goods sold. Fixed manufacturing costs are viewed as expenses of the period in which they are incurred. This method is not...
See first-in, still here (FISH).
The amount of wages and related expenses that have been incurred by the employer (and earned by the employees) but have not yet been paid.
Also referred to as a sunk cost. A past cost is not relevant to a decision.
See return on capital employed.
Using debt in order to control more assets. Also known as financial leverage.
The person or organization to whom a check is written.
See inventory conformity rule.
To repurchase bonds that the company had previously issued.
Under accrual accounting an item has been “earned” and is reported as revenue when a service has been performed or the ownership to a product has been transferred from the seller to the buyer (not when cash...
A donor-imposed restriction on net assets that requires using the assets within a specified passage of time.
The quantity on hand that will trigger an order to buy more items. A company’s reorder point for Product X might be 80 units. When the quantity on hand gets down to 80, a purchase order is prepared to obtain more...
The first-in, first-out cost flow assumumption under the perpetual inventory system. The first (oldest) costs are the first costs removed from inventory at the time that goods are sold. The most recent costs will remain...
Refers to the accounting associated with the preparation of the main financial statements: income statement, balance sheet, statement of cash flows, statement of retained earnings, statement of stockholders’...
A division or department of a business whose managers are responsible for both revenues and expenses.
See long-term liabilities.
See inventory: work-in-process (WIP).
This term refers to checking account balances. On a bank’s balance sheet, demand deposits are reported as current liabilities.
The person or business that receives a loan from a bank or other lender.
A liability account on the books of a company receiving cash in advance of delivering goods or services to the customer. The entry on the books of the company at the time the money is received in advance is a debit to...
A potential gain that is not recognized by accountants in the financial statements until it actually occurs. For example, Company P is suing Company D over a patent infringement. Company P has a contingent gain. Because...
A quality of accounting information that facilitates the comparison of financial reporting of one company to the financial reporting of another company.
Some examples of intangible assets include copyrights, patents, goodwill, trade names, trademarks, mail lists, etc. These assets will be reported at cost (or lower) on the balance sheet after property, plant and...
Under the accrual basis of accounting this income statement account reports the amount of commissions expense that pertains to the revenues earned by the company during the accounting period shown in the heading of the...
Scrap or waste that should have been avoided. In other words, abnormal spoilage is the amount that is over and above the normal amount that is expected in a production process.
These agencies establish the educational requirements and the eligibility of candidates desiring to sit for the Uniform CPA Exam. There is a board of accountancy in each of the 50 U.S. states plus five other...
Fair, unbiased, and objective; not subjective.
A multi-column listing of the amounts needed to eliminate a balance in a systematic manner over the life of the item. For example, an amortization schedule for a 15-year mortgage loan would show the 180 payments. The...
The record of checks issued or written, deposits, bank charges, bank credits and the resulting balance. Also referred to as the check register.
In payroll processing, the withholding of money from an employee’s wages or salary as ordered by a court. The money is then remitted by the employer to the agency specified by the court. To learn more, see...
Also referred to as manufacturing overhead, indirect manufacturing costs, factory burden, and manufacturing support costs. To learn more, see Explanation of Manufacturing Overhead.
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